Culture

In our bi-monthly Seattlemag.com column And Another Thing..., Knute Berger--who writes regularly for Seattle Magazine and Crosscut.com and is a frequent pundit on KUOW--takes an in-depth look at some of the highly topical and sometimes polarizing issues in our city.

In the face of shrinking land resources and concerns about carbon footprints, what do we do with our loved ones when they die? For Katrina Spade, 37, a Capitol Hill–based designer with a master’s degree in architecture, that question arose after she had two kids and began thinking about her own mortality. Traditional burial and cremation both came with environmental consequences that didn’t sit well with her, so she proposed an alternative as a part of her master’s thesis.

I was just remarking last night how sad I was to see summer end, to which my husband responded "Why? You're obsessed with fall." Touche, dear husband. He's right. I am obsessed. And I've got the shipment of Pottery Barn mercury glass pumpkins with a set of matching wrought-iron owl lanterns (OMG) on the way to prove it.

The name Bruce Lee instantly conjures images of the shirtless martial artist performing speed-of-light kicks, unstoppable blows and nunchaku tricks. But instead, picture the young Lee attending classes at Seattle Central College (then called Edison Technical School) in pursuit of his high school diploma. Imagine him working nights as a waiter at Ruby Chow’s Restaurant on First Hill.

When Landmark Theatres closed the Egyptian Theatre in June 2013, many locals proclaimed it a death knell for authentic Capitol Hill. (The death knells are becoming clangorous in this swiftly changing neighborhood.) The longstanding beacon of independent film—which started out as a Masonic temple—became a movie palace in the early 1980s, when the Seattle International Film Festival took over the space, built it out, added pharaonic details and dubbed it the Egyptian Theatre.

It's a chilly Thursday morning and as you can see, we are in the mood for donuts. Specifically, a classic sprinkles donut from the Seattle-based chain, Top Pot. This hand-forged donut mecca has 15 shops and cafes all over the greater Seattle area and recently opened one up in Dallas (talk about a change of scenery). Soon Alki Beach residents can expect one in their neighborhood, sandwiched between a Subway and a Starbucks on Alki Ave. SW.

When the Seattle Storefronts program took its first steps in 2010, the city was still climbing back from the economic downturn. Papered windows and empty storefronts with dusty For Lease signs were a common sight in retail areas. Shunpike, a local nonprofit devoted to helping artists with the business side of art, saw a win-win in putting temporary art installations in these empty spaces: Artists get a free, public place to display their work, and businesses get a cleaned-up, compelling storefront, one that attracts pedestrians and might even entice a full-time renter.

In the black, wanting cosmos of the music world, talented musicians generally see each other only in passing. They rarely have time for more than just a brief nod one to the other–perhaps a tandem song or two played out of mutual respect and appreciation. So when the rare chance of whole-hearted and prodigious players banding together arises, the result is worthy of attention.